Kingston’s HLPC Loses a Third Member as Citizen Volunteer Resigns.

Leslie Melvin reads her public comment, the letter submitted by the HLPC to the Kingston Planning Board on March 11th recommending a positive declaration in the SEQR process, at last evening’s public hearing on the proposed Kingstonian Project

After providing public comment for the proposed Kingstonian Project during its public hearing last evening, Leslie Melvin, a citizen volunteer who was serving on the Historic Landmarks Preservation Commission (HLPC), resigned.

Melvin submitted her letter of resignation following her public speaking.

Dear Mayor Noble,

Merging the HAC and the HLPC has been a publicly-stated goal of yours for the last few years despite failing to convince either commission, or the Common Council, of the plan’s merits.

With your recent decision to not renew Marissa Marvelli and Alan Baer’s appointments—and by appointing HAC commissioners to fill those newly created vacancies — you have effected your own de facto merging of the HAC and HLPC.

To be clear, these efforts appear to only serve one administration’s own short-term interests – they are not in the best interest of the residents of the city of Kingston, and they are certainly not in the interest of preserving what we know to be irreplaceable in the city we love.

This is no way to treat dedicated and knowledgeable professionals, this is no way to treat volunteers, and this is no way to treat constituents. In such a troubling political climate, we expect our leaders to honor an obligation to guarantee transparent, fair processes, and to encourage the exchange of information, free from undue influence. You’ve sent a clear signal that volunteers, working on behalf of the city and its residents, can only expect conditional support.

I am saddened to submit my resignation from the HLPC, effective immediately.

Sincerely,

Leslie MelvinKingston NY

On March 7th, the Historic Preservation Landmarks Commission at their monthly meeting identified a number of potential significant environmental impacts for the proposed Kingstonian Project. The City of Kingston’s Planning Director currently serves as an administrator for the Commission. She is also the administrator for the Planning Board, which is the Lead Agency for the SEQR process for the Kingstonian (meant to be an impartial body responsible for administering the environmental review process) and a key member of the executive branch that wrote the successful Downtown Revitalization Initiative (DRI) application to secure the $10 million dollar grant to be used in part to fund the Kingstonian Project. This official recently spent nearly 15 minutes trying to dissuade the Landmarks Commission from amending their agenda to include a discussion of the project and its potential impacts as it pertained to the historical, archeological and community character of the project, even though they had requested that the discussion item be put on the agenda at their previous meeting . The HLPC is one of 10 involved agencies that will have a discretionary decision to make for the Kingstonian Project. Although anyone can point out potential significant environmental impacts, it is required as per the SEQR regulations that the Commission in their capacity to “state their concerns (of the)…potential (environmental) impacts of the overall action.”

A few weeks after their March meeting, Mayor Steve Noble called Marvelli and Baer into his office separately, removing them from the Historic Preservation Landmarks Commission (the mayor says that he chose to not “reinstate” and was not “removing” them – however, their terms expired seven months ago without any action taken by the Mayor who understood that both commissioners wished to continue to serve). The City of Kingston’s Charter provides the Mayor of Kingston full authority to appoint and remove members from all boards, committees and commissions without requiring any guidance, oversight or reason.